text three

Is There a Way to Keep the Britain's Economy Growing?

In today's knowledge economy, nations survive on the things they do best. Japanese design electronics while Germans export engineering techniques. The French serve the best food and Americans make computers.

Britain specializes in the gift of talking. The nation doesn't manufacture much of anything. But it has lawyers, stylists and business consultants who earn their living from talk, talk and more talk.

The World Foundation think tank says the UK's four iconic jobs today are not scientists, engineers,teachers and nurses. Instead, they're hairdressers, celebrities, management consultants and managers.

But can all this talking keep the British economy going? The British government thinks it can.

Although the country's trade deficit was more than ―― 60 billion in 2006, UK's largest in the postwar period, officials say the country has nothing to worry about. In fact, Britain does have a world-class pharmaceutical industry, and it still makes a small sum from selling arms abroad. It also trades services accountancy, insurance, banking and advertising. The government believes Britain is on the cutting edge of the knowledge economy. After all, the country of Shakespeare and Wordsworth has a literary tradition of which to be proud. Rockn' roll is an English language medium, and there are billions to be made by their cutting-edge bands. In other words, the creative economy has plenty of strength to carry the British economy.

However, creative industries account for only about 4 percent of UK's exports of goods and services. The industries are finding it hard to make a profit, according to a report of the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts. The report shows only 38 percent of British companies were engaged in innovation activities, 3 percentage points below the EU average and well below Germany (61 percent) and Sweden (47 percent).

In fact, it might be better to call Britain a servant economy -- there are at least 4 million people in service. The majority of the population are employed by the rich to cook,clean, and take care of their children. Many graduates are even doing menial jobs for which they do not need a degree. Most employment growth has been, and will continue to be, at the low-skill end of the service sector -- in shops, bars, hotels, domestic service and in nursing and care homes.

36. According to the World Foundation think tank, one of the iconic jobs in Britain today is

A. law makers.

B. business consultants.

C. home servants.

D. school teachers.

37. The phrase the cutting edge in Paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to

A. the most popular.

B. the most political.

C. the most advanced.

D. the proudest.

38. The officials are not worried about the trade deficit in 2006, because they believe

A. Britain is home to the largest pharmaceutical industry in the world.

B. the literary tradition of Britain will help make billions of pounds.

C. Britain is one cutting edge of the knowledge economy.

D. the world economy is strong enough to carry the Britain economy.

39. Which of the following is true about the creative industries in Britain?

A. They contribute a lot to the country's trade deficit.

B. They are not doing as well as those in other European nations. '

C. They can't make a profit out of their innovation activities.

D. They make Britain on the cutting edge of the knowledge economy.

40. It can be inferred from the passage that

A. the gift of talking can keep the British economy growing.

B. the British government is over-confident in its economy.

C. the British economy is the least innovative one in the EU.

D. being a servant to the rich is one of the best jobs in Britain.

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What's Killing the Bats

First it was bees. Now it is bats. Biologists in America are working hard to discover the cause of the mysterious deaths of tens of thousands of bats in the northeastern part of the country. Most of the bats affected are the common little brown bats (Myotis lucifugus), but other species, such as the long-eared bat, the small-footed hat, the eastern pipistrelle, and the Indiana bat have also been affected. In some cases, more than 90 percent of the bat populations have died.

One possibility is disease. A white fungus (真菌) known as fusarium has been found on the noses of both living and dead bats. However, scientists don't know if the fungus is the primary cause of death, a secondary cause of death, or not a cause at all, but the result of some other conditions.

Another possible cause is a lack of food. For example, bats typically eat a large number of moths (蛾), and in some states such as New York, the number of moths has been declining in recent years. If bats can't eat enough food, they starve to death.

Still other scientists believe that global warming is to blame. Warmer temperatures in recent years have been waking up hibernating (冬眠) bats earlier than usual. If bats break their hibernation at the wrong time, they might not find their expected food sources. The weather might also turn cold again and weaken or kill the bats.

Scientists might not agree on the causes of the bat die-off, but they do agree on the consequences.

Bats are an important predator of mosquitoes; a single brown bat can eat 1,000 or more insects in an hour. They also eat beetles and other insects that damage plant crops. If there aren't enough bats, damage will be great from the insects theyeat. While bats live a long time for their size -- the little brown bat can live for more than 30 years- a female bat has only one baby per year, so bat populations grow slowly. Many bat species in the United States are already protected or endangered.

How can you help? Do not disturb sleeping or nesting bats. If you discover bate that seem to be sick or that are dead, contact your local Fish & Wildlife Department with the details. However, be careful not to touch the animals.

31. What is the main idea of this passage?

A. All species of bats in North America are dying.

B. Scientists already know the cause of the deaths of bats.

C. The bat deaths are a serious problem.

D. There are many possible causes of the deaths of bats.

32. What does the first sentence in Paragraph 1 mean?

A. Bees have been dying mysteriously.

B. The first article on the website is about bees.

C. Bees usually die before bats.

D. It was bees that caused the deaths of bats.

33. The word pipistrelle in Paragraph 1 refers to

A. a kind of fungus.

B. an area in the U.S.

C. a special cave.

D. a kind of bat.

34. The moths in Paragraph 3 are taken as an example of

A. diseases that kill bats.

B. Insects that bats eat.

C. animals that have diseases.

D. bat species that are starving to death.

35. What is the purpose of the last paragraph?

A. To get people to stop killing bats.

B. To hire workers for the Fish & Wildlife Department.

C. To ask people not to touch dead bats.

D. To tell the public how to help bats.